[2] He said in a statement that it was more important that "I spend my time and energy trying to focus on solving the nation's budget woes than be distracted by another campaign.

His first wife, Pam, is the sister of former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture and former North Dakota Governor Ed Schafer;[8][9] they have a daughter, Jessamyn.

[10] On February 14, 1987, Conrad married Lucy Calautti, his 1986 Senate campaign manager, who is now a lobbyist for Major League Baseball.

[11] After graduating from college, Conrad became a civil servant, working as an assistant to the North Dakota State Tax Commissioner, Byron Dorgan, who later became his colleague in the Senate.

Conrad was a leading member of the "Gang of 10", a conservative group that pushed for much greater offshore drilling in sensitive environmental areas.

[citation needed] On September 29, 2009, Conrad voted with Senate Finance Committee Republicans against an amendment to a health care bill that would have provided for a public option.

He was supportive of the Stupak-Pitts Amendment, which places limits on taxpayer-funded abortions in the context of the November 2009 Affordable Health Care for America Act.

While he personally opposes gay marriage, he voted against a proposed constitutional ban on it and has supported bills that prevent discrimination based on sexual orientation.

While he initially voted in favor of the USA PATRIOT Act, he has opposed warrantless wiretapping and government's continued use of the Guantanamo Bay detention facility.

In June 2008 it was reported that Conrad had received mortgages on favorable terms for a second home and an apartment building due to his association with Countrywide Financial CEO Angelo R.

[22] In an April 23, 2004, email about one of Conrad's loans, Mozilo encouraged an employee to "make an exception due to the fact that the borrower is a senator.

During the campaign, Conrad pledged that he would not run for reelection if the federal budget deficit had not fallen substantially by the end of his term.

By 1992 it became obvious that this would not be the case, and although polls showed that the electorate would have welcomed his reneging on that pledge, Conrad considered his promise binding and did not run for reelection.